Seek the Sound of Silence

In search of peace and tranquility in your everyday life these days have become a juggling act, bouncing form one quiet place to another, from one hot and sweaty room to an air conditioned office with a PC  that carries all your personal files safely stored in it. This is to me what it amounts to in my effort to find a quiet and comfortable spot to work from and so here i am at the Museum Galleri Tuanku Fauziah, at USM. Upon arrival I was offered a packet of Nasi Lemak or coconut rice with spicy chicken which i reluctantly accepted just to honor a offering; to foster a greater bond with those who work here in a spirit of brotherhood or simply not be seen as aloof. Alhamdillah! praise be to Allah! You know not from where or how he gives you His Blessing; how i often forget this first principle of abundance; to be thankful, filled with gratitude for what has already be given.
It is a common view among the Masters of Yoga and Tai Chi, Zen Schools and Sufi retreats, Temples and Suraus that peace and quiet is imperative to be be sought after for one's own sound mental state. For those who have a form of practice or another like Yoga, or Sitting meditation, Vipassana or a Zen retreat, to be in a quiet area free from the sound of traffic or chainsaws are rarely heard. Where the air is a whole lot purer and moving if possible like by the sea shores or in a jungle cloister away from the world outside. But this is a dream most of us who even thought of such ideas would entertain with a grain of salt; it is a tall request. As we move along claiming to be more developed or even civilized, intelligent and fruitful we are finding it more and more harder to find, that quiet space and timeless corner to enjoy it. This is what living in the City is like day to day, From after the Fajr or Subuh prayer before the sunrise and as the traffic outside starts to pick up I took my morning walk towards the Karpal Singh Drive on the water front at Sungai Pinang. While i do my walk I am also doing my Zikr.or repetition of a verse or the Beautiful names of Allah, or simply saying Subhanallah, with every step i take. it last for at least an hour and a half till the sun has risen six inches from the horizon and this rising sun i have been witnessing for the past few weeks as a practice of energy absorbing meditation; it is awesome to witness the sun first piercing light heralding the new day. I place the red orb between my eyebrows and allow for the rays to penetrate into my skull and re-energize my brain cells while also waking up my pineal gland from its slumber. I do this till the sun simply gets too hot or lost it strong penetrating effect -six inches from the horizon. I do this sitting on the sea wall facing the Penang channel at Karpal Singh Drive. Who was karpal Singh? Read my blog entry earlier caalled The True Believer.'
After the walk I would sit at the computer and listen to a lecture or two on You Tube, and what i have been listening to lately is a talk on the Surah Al Fatihah by a young American from New York. The first surah or verse of the Quran, the Al-Fatihah contains the key to the entire revelations of the Quran. To hold and understand and recite this verse is a must for all Muslims and is the main surah to be recited for every solat performed. In this short verse God introduced Himself and how He is related to Man - He is the Master and man is His slaves. ..Man and Jins was created to serve and worship Allah.It has been a long journey for me to even come close to being able to perform my solat or prayer with full concentration or Kushuk as it is called in Arabic. My mind I realize is much too strong at times that I often even forget at what rakaats i was at or what stage of the solat, did i miss something? This is one of the beauty of performing the solat, it keeps you in check for your sense of being in the moment in space and time fully awakened to what you are doing and that is to stand before God, nothing less. Five times a day and that if i am not too lazy to get up and take my wudukhs or the cleansing ritual or ablution, of washing my face and other parts of my body. Yes, the mind is much moire determined to avoid the trouble all togehter and it often succeeds.
Here i am sitting and typing away my thoughts while listening to a song being sung in the  praise of Allah and His Messenger coming from the cubicle next to me What more could one ask for on a  hot scorching day like today, I feel very sorry for my car sitting out there being heated up by the blazing sun. It is hard to imagine how the trees can withstand such heat at least six to eight hours a day and this too i got to be thankful for, the Miracle of Creation will never seize to amaze me. Alhamdullilah! I asked for rain but it is on hold or so it seems; perhaps the dry spell is here to stay. Perhaps it is time to take my short retreat back into the forest.at Lintang Organic Farm..